


Sunshine in a Storm

by JasmineTeaLatte



Series: The Phoenix and the Dragon [1]
Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Aged-Up Character(s), Awkward Flirting, Drinking, Ember Island (Avatar), F/M, Flirting, Implied/Referenced Sex, Slow Burn, Zuko is an Awkward Turtleduck, Zutara Week 2020
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-26
Updated: 2020-07-26
Packaged: 2021-03-04 22:20:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 9,721
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25153858
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JasmineTeaLatte/pseuds/JasmineTeaLatte
Summary: After returning from the seeing the Ember Island Players' production, Katara and Zuko find themselves having an honest conversation alone by a beachside campfire, discovering something truly beautiful in the process.Takes place immediately after "The Ember Island Players."Written for Zutara Week 2020 – Day 3: Fuse
Relationships: Katara/Zuko (Avatar), Sokka/Suki (Avatar)
Series: The Phoenix and the Dragon [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1847290
Comments: 45
Kudos: 379





	1. Chapter 1

Katara wrapped her arms around her knees and stared at the campfire in silence. To her left, the prince of the Fire Nation was leaning back on his elbows in the sand and looking up at the night sky.

He took a swig from the bottle of whiskey they’d discovered in the kitchens earlier and grimaced slightly. He then offered it to her, which she declined.

“I still can’t believe you drink,” she said.

Zuko shook his head. He was 19, well past the legal drinking age in the Fire Nation, but he still didn't indulge often.

“I don’t normally, but after seeing that horrible excuse of a play, I needed something a lot stronger than tea,” he said, taking another sip. "As long as you're responsible and don't abuse it, drinking can actually be pleasant."

Not that he would know. He’d first tried alcohol with the sailors shortly after his banishment, and he still remembered how sick a few sips had made him. Zuko built up more of a tolerance when he’d returned to the Fire Nation after his banishment ended, but those were hardly what he’d remembered as happy occasions.

He'd turned to sneaking the harder drinks during especially stressful times, which seemed to pile up right before he defected. Once he left, he'd sworn it off altogether.

However, desperate times call for desperate measures, and seeing a crowd of Fire Nation citizens cheer for his fictional death definitely called for some sort of distraction.

~*~*~

After they’d returned from the seeing the Ember Island Players’ interpretation of their lives, the group had mostly gone their separate ways. Aang went to bed early, still slightly shaken up at seeing his own fictional demise, and Toph soon followed after, still cackling at her portrayal.

For awhile Sokka and Suki hung around the campfire on the beach with Katara and Zuko. He'd offered the bottle to the others as well, but they declined - Sokka preferred the Southern Water Tribe's vodka, and Suki had an affinity for the sweeter alcohols instead.

Zuko provided the fire to light the embers, concentrating his bending to a small blast from his fingertips before it roared to life.

"You just need a single spark to light the fuse," he bragged, bowing as the others applauded and made sound effects of wonderment for good measure. "Sometimes it takes a while for it to catch, but when it does..."

He flourished his hand, and the flames rose even higher.

"Showoff," Katara teased, giving him a playful wink that he returned. 

They all laughed as the four of them reenacted and mocked certain scenes.

"You guys didn't actually flirt down in the catacombs, did you?" Sokka asked at one point, and the two in question cringed.

"Ugh. Absolutely not," Katara groaned, and Zuko nodded in agreement. "I was furious at him, because thought I was being used as bait and he was there to attack whenever you guys came to my rescue."

"And I was just hoping she'd wear herself out from yelling and be quiet," he added, earning him a lighthearted glare from Katara.

Then as he started to take another swallow, the whiskey floated up out of the bottle in front of his face.

"Watch yourself," she teased, and they all laughed.

She bended it back down into the bottle and gave him another wink, which didn't go unnoticed by the other two.

"So... absolutely nothing happened down there?" Suki asked with a knowing smile.

Katara and Zuko glanced at each other briefly.

"Well, after awhile I stopped yelling at him and got upset talking about Mom," she said softly. "Then he mentioned that he lost his mom too, and afterwards we just talked until Aang and Iroh showed up."

He nodded in agreement.

"She actually offered to heal my scar with that special healing water," Zuko said. "But we were interrupted before she could actually go through with it. Which turned out to be a good thing, since that's what saved Aang after my sister shot him in the back." 

Sokka glanced at Suki, and they exchanged an unspoken look.

"If we ever make it back up to the Spirit Oasis at the North Pole again, I'll see if I can get more and try again," Katara offered.

Zuko shook his head, though, and waved his hand.

"Nah, don't worry about it," he said. "There's a story behind it, but I'll tell you all later when the time is right."

The others nodded, and Katara exchanged a gentle smile with Zuko before he turned to look at Sokka.

"So... your first girlfriend really did turn into the moon, huh? I thought you were being metaphorical."

~*~*~

Eventually, Sokka and Suki also turned in for the night.

That left two former enemies turned friends sitting in a comfortable silence beside the fire. Normally Katara would have felt the need to keep a conversation going, but surprisingly she now felt at ease now around Zuko.

“So,” he said after a bit. “You were the Painted Lady who helped destroy that factory a few months ago. You know you caused some generals a major headache and set us back by a bit.”

She looked over at him and noticed he was grinning at her.

“And your point is?” she asked, quirking her eyebrow.

He shook his head.

“I’m just amazed that, even though you were in enemy territory at the time, you still took on the persona of a Fire Nation spirit and made it your mission to help them out,” he said. “Not many people would have shown that type of compassion.”

“Sokka and the others tried to talk me out of it,” she agreed, shrugging. “But despite how I feel about the Fire Nation as a whole, I couldn’t just stand by when someone needed help.”

Zuko mulled this over and spoke up after a minute.

“I know you don’t think much of us, and you have every right to,” he said. “But the majority of them are actually good people. They’ve just listened to the propaganda their whole lives and don’t know any better, but I do believe they’re capable of growth. They just need someone to show them the way.”

She nodded.

“I know they are,” she concurred. “At first I thought they were all the same but after my time here, I’ve realized that there are good and bad people on all sides.”

To his surprise she moved from the bench to sit in the sand beside him. Katara reached for the bottle of whiskey and braved a sip but immediately spat it back out into the fire, which blazed for just a second.

“Sorry, sorry,” he laughed as she scowled over at him and wiped her mouth. “Was that your first time?”

“Yeah,” she said, her face contorting in disgust. “That was awful, Zuko. I thought it would be bracing but if anything it was the opposite. I’m not going to get sick from that, am I?”

He shook his head and smiled.

“Since you didn’t even swallow, I highly doubt it.”

“Good. Yuck.”

After a minute she spoke softly.

“The play may have covered a lot of things, but it also left out a lot of stuff too. Like Hama, the waterbender we met from the Southern Water Tribe hiding out in the Fire Nation.”

She’d done her best to forget the bitter, hateful old woman who forced her to bloodbend. In fact, she thought she’d succeeded until she used it without hesitation on the Fire Nation soldier during the search for her mother’s killer.

Before she and Zuko rejoined the others after that trip, she asked him not to mention that particular incident but didn’t offer any further explanation. Well, if anyone knew about confronting the worst aspects of one’s character, it would be the prince. The others didn’t fully understand her dark side, but she knew he would.

She fidgeted slightly.

“Remember when we thought we’d found the soldier who killed my mom, and I made him stop right in his tracks by contorting his body?”

Zuko nodded. He’d been intrigued but sensed it was a touchy subject for her so he hadn’t pushed her for more details.

He listened as she recounted the story of how she’d been forced to discover a darkness down inside of her and how she had to resort to using it to save her friends. When she finished she looked over at him and as she’d expected, he didn’t seem to be judging her.

If anything, he looked fascinated.

“Remind me to never get on your bad side ever again,” was all he said, earning a light glare and a gentle swat from her.

She wrapped her arms around her knees again.

“I’m serious, Zuko.”

“I’m serious too. I’m not saying I generally condone controlling someone else’s body, but maybe it could be used for good.”

Katara scoffed, and he continued.

“Really, though. You’re a healer, so you know better than anyone how vital blood is to the human body. What if someone were seriously injured and you could stop them from bleeding out? Maybe even use it to save them if their heart stopped beating?”

After a moment he hesitantly put his hand on her upper back and patted delicately, and she looked at him in surprise. He withdrew it immediately.

“Sorry,” he mumbled. “I’m not really good at this whole comfort thing.”

She gave him a small smile.

“It’s okay. You can if you want to.”

He uncertainly returned his hand and left it between her shoulder blades, rubbing lightly. She noted how warm his hand was, which she had expected from the firebender. What surprised her, however, was how natural it felt being there. Huh.

“Katara… everyone has darkness inside of them on some level. Just because you have it doesn’t make you a monster. It’s what you choose to do with it is what’s important. I used to think firebending was only good for destruction, but now I realize it also brings life. You just have to understand it.”

She glanced back at him and smiled slightly.

“I guess that makes sense,” she whispered. “Thank you. I still don’t want to tell the others though, if you don’t mind.”

He nodded.

“Your secret is safe with me.”

To his surprise, she scooted closer and leaned her head on his shoulder. He wondered if she'd heard him gulp. Nervously, he wrapped his arm around her and hoped he wasn’t being too presumptuous.

She didn’t seem to mind, however, and wiggled a bit closer instead.

“So…” she said after a minute of enjoying his warmth. “Is there anything major the play left out about you?”

There were several things, actually, but there was one in particular he thought she'd find fascinating... although it might be sensitive subject.

“I knew Jet,” he said. “My uncle and I actually met him, Longshot and Smellerbee on the ferry to Ba Sing Se.”

She looked up at him in wonder.

“Wait, really?”

He nodded and told her about their first meeting and how he’d teamed up with them to sneak food from the captain’s quarters out to the rest of the passengers. He explained how Jet had offered him a place amongst his Freedom Fighters and how it all fell through after his uncle blew their cover by firebending his tea.

“I feel guilty that he got taken away by the Dai Li now, seeing what happened to him,” he said, sounding remorseful. “But I didn’t know what else to do. He was about to expose our cover and threatened my uncle. I couldn’t just let him go free.”

Katara nodded against his shoulder.

“Jet had a lot of good intentions but he was always blinded by his hatred of the Fire Nation,” she agreed. “He never could see the bigger picture.”

She glanced back up at Zuko.

“For the record, I was appalled when I found out he was planning on flooding that village. I certainly wasn’t lovestruck like they made me out to be.”

He considered asking a personal question and since he’d already had a few sips of alcohol, he figured he could blame any impropriety on that.

“So… you and him, huh?”

She nodded and looked like she was lost in thought.

“He was my first.”

 _Oh_. Zuko hadn’t expected her to admit that. His cheeks flushed.

“Yeah, I shouldn’t have said anything,” he apologized, looking off. “I know that’s personal.”

She looked up, confused.

“I meant he was my first kiss. What did you think I meant?” she trailed off before realization sunk in and her face turned scarlet as well. “Oh, no! Not like that!”

She scooted out from under his arm and he fell backwards on the sand, covering his face with his hands. He groaned.

“Sorry, I totally misunderstood,” he mumbled, his face still hidden. “I didn’t mean to… Ugh. Sorry.”

Her face was still flushed, but she was grinning now.

“You just have no people skills, do you?” she asked dryly.

He shook his head, not removing his hands.

“I’m even more awkward than a baby turtleduck learning how to walk.”

She giggled and nudged him. He was pretty cute when he got all flustered, she realized.

“It’s okay, awkward turtleduck, you can’t help it,” she said as he finally uncovered his face.

Then her smile faded.

“No, if we’re being honest I still haven’t done… _that_. I mean I’ve kissed him and one other guy a couple of times, but I’ve never gone that far,” she said, recalling how Aang had secretly kissed her earlier that night during an intermission.

She was 17 and knew girls younger than herself had already gone much further than she had. She just hadn't found the right person yet, she supposed. That, and and she'd been busy trying to help Aang save the world. Not that she hadn't fantasized about it sometimes at night, whenever she found her perfect match...

“Who’s the other guy?” he asked, curious. “Any chance I might have met him, too?”

She frowned slightly and looked down.

“Maybe… I’d rather not talk about it. I mean he’s a much better guy than Jet, and I do like him a lot. But… I don’t know if I feel as strongly about him as he does for me.”

Zuko raised his eyebrow in surprise but didn’t voice his thoughts. He’d had a feeling Aang harbored a crush on Katara for some time now, even before he’d joined their side, but it didn’t seem appropriate to bring up, especially while trying to convince them all that he was good now.

That explained why he’d seemed so disappointed when Zuko sat beside Katara instead of him – which in hindsight, probably gave off the wrong impression. However, Zuko really did just like sitting beside her as a friend.

It’s not like he also had feelings for her, right? Right.

It also explained Aang’s reaction when he’d gotten up and left after the crystal catacombs scene. Zuko had noticed Katara was upset after she’d returned from looking for him, but he hadn’t asked.

Now, Katara was staring at him, and her eyes widened as it dawned on her that he’d figured it out. He held up both of his hands to placate her when she opened her mouth to speak.

“Hey, that’s your business. I have an idea of who it is, but if you don’t want to talk about him, we don’t have to.”

Ugh. It was times like this that Katara wished Zuko could be as dumb as he was awkward.

~*~*~

It had been her third kiss overall with the Avatar. The first was almost out of necessity when they were trapped in the Cave of Two Lovers, and it had been mutual. The second one had been a surprise right before the invasion on the Day of Black Sun. She hadn’t been opposed to it, but she also hadn’t enjoyed it, either.

Then there was the one from tonight, after he’d gotten angry and stormed out after seeing the actors portraying her and Zuko get a bit too cozy while acting out their encounter in the crystal catacombs. That had been awkward enough already, but then what happened after she went looking for him just made it worse.

Aang had finally confessed his feelings for her, and she’d tried to rebuff them as gently as possible. She certainly cared about him, and one point she might have even returned his sentiments.

But ever since their kiss before the invasion, she’d had her doubts. When she’d told him as much, he’d gone in and kissed her anyways, to her indignation. She’d stormed off immediately afterwards and they hadn’t spoken since.

She also hadn’t told anyone else about it, though she’d probably talk with Suki later and get her advice.

She was still mad at Aang but knew she ultimately wouldn’t find it in her heart to hold a grudge against him.

Everything was just so confusing right now, and the way her current companion was looking at her in deep contemplation wasn’t helping either.


	2. Chapter 2

“Alright, it’s your turn,” she said, shaking them both from their thoughts. “I told you, now you have to tell me. Have you ever kissed anyone?”

She was just a bit surprised when he nodded. He was handsome, sure, but he was also just so awkward she was amazed he’d been able to pull it off at all.

“Yeah, my first was with this girl in Ba Sing Se my uncle set me up with, and I was even more socially challenged on that date than I am now, if you can believe it."

She could just picture the prince struggling through small talk at dinner.

"Tell me about her," she said, smiling.

He looked up at the sky wistfully.

"Her name was Jin, and she was a regular at the tea shop we worked at in the lower ring," he said. "You would have liked her, I think. She was nice to me, even though I was quiet and awkward, and she didn't laugh when I tried to juggle-"

"You did what now?" Katara giggled, and he blushed a bit.

"Um, yeah. I couldn't think of a good cover story for my uncle and I, so I told her we were in the circus and that I juggled. Then she wanted to see a demonstration, and well... I ended up with food all over me."

She giggled again, but he didn't look mad. He actually grinned along with her.

"Clearly, you would have laughed," he said dryly.

"I also would have come up with a better cover story," she retorted playfully. "So then what happened? Did you at least get a kiss then for embarrassing yourself?"

He shook his head and told her about the Firelight Fountain and how he'd used his firebending to light the lanterns for Jin.

Katara raised her eyebrows.

"Why Prince Zuko, you may act all tough, but you've got a romantic streak in you," she teased, poking his ribs as he blushed. "You risked getting caught, all so you could make a pretty girl smile. Is that when she kissed you?"

He smiled and nodded.

"Yeah... it was nice," he said softly. "She didn't say anything, but I'm pretty sure she figured out right then I was a firebender, and she still kissed me."

"And then what happened?" Katara asked, intrigued.

He frowned slightly.

"Don't laugh," he said quietly. "But I got nervous and immediately ran off."

Katara looked down at him sympathetically. The same prince who had chased them from one pole to the other and who never backed down from a fight got scared while kissing a girl.

”That’s kind of sweet,” she said softly before a thought occurred to her.

He saw the smile tugging at her lips.

"What?"

She shook her head.

"You're laughing at me."

"No I'm not. Forget it, Zuko."

"No, tell me."

She grinned. Well, since he asked...

"I was just thinking of all the ways we tried to shake you off our trail back in the day, apparently all I had to do was kiss you and that would have scared you away."

He gave her a wounded look, and she squeezed his hand.

"Lighten up, I'm just teasing," she said.

He still didn't look amused and turned his attention back up to the night sky. 

"Sounds to me like you're just sad your first kiss wasn't with a prince," he retorted. "Instead you kissed an angry guy with hook swords. Who, by the way, I could beat in a fair sword fight without firebending."

She swatted at him and rolled her eyes.

For a second she thought about pinning his arms down in the sand and kissing him right then and there, just to see how he'd react. _Better not_ , she thought. She didn't want to ruin their newfound friendship.

But she did wonder if his lips were as warm as his hand had been...

"Then the second girl, I dated for a while when I returned home," he was saying, bringing her back to the present. "You’ve met her, actually. Remember Mai, my sister’s friend with the knives?”

Katara’s eyebrows shot up in surprise.

“Really? Her?”

He looked up at her from the sand and raised an eyebrow as well.

“Is something wrong?”

Katara shook her head. She didn't mention that based on what she'd heard, the two girls couldn't sound more different. Maybe he just needed to find someone who was the right blend of sweet and tough, she mused.

“No, sorry, I didn’t mean anything by that. I’m just surprised, that’s all. I didn’t think she cared about anyone.”

She then briefly explained their first encounter in Omashu and how Mai hadn’t hesitated when Azula called off the trade to get her baby brother back.

Zuko shrugged.

“I see your point, but Azula was also standing right there. At one time she and Ty Lee might have genuinely thought of my sister as a friend, but by the end they were staying with her out of fear. If she’d spoken out then against Azula’s plan she might have gotten fried.”

“I guess so,” Katara conceded, frowning. “It still didn’t sit right with me, not that it matters anyway.”

Zuko looked back up at the night sky. Mai hadn’t told him that particular story, but it didn’t surprise him.

“Not saying what she did was right, but… Mai had a complicated upbringing,” he explained. “I’ve known her since we were both little. Her parents were always worried about appearances and rising in society, so they brought her up to be this quiet, well-behaved lady and she wasn’t allowed to express herself. Not unlike Toph, I guess. Then by the time they had Tom-Tom, they’d risen in rank enough to relax their harsh rules, but Mai still held a grudge against them for having to be a silent, dutiful child all of her life.”

He looked over at Katara again.

“Like I said, she’s not perfect but she’s also not the cold, unfeeling statue some see her as.”

Katara shrugged.

“Fair enough. So why did you break up with her?” she asked. “If it’s not too personal, that is.”

He and Sokka told their group how Mai and Ty Lee finally stood up against Azula to help them escape from the Boiling Rock. Katara had also heard from her brother later that Zuko had been stunned speechless when it all happened.

He put his hands behind his neck and sighed into the night sky.

"Part of me didn’t want to,” he admitted as if to himself. “I cared about her, and on some level I still do. She was my first…” he stopped and looked up at Katara ruefully. “Sorry, that was probably more than you needed to hear.”

She just smiled and laid down in the sand near him.

“Don’t worry about it, now we’re even,” she said, turning her head to look at Zuko. “So, what happened?”

~*~*~

Mai hadn’t forced him into it, and he hadn’t hated the experience, if he was being completely honest with himself.

He’d genuinely enjoyed seeing her show a more passionate side than usual. Even though neither knew exactly what they were doing, it had gone as well as he could have hoped for.

But after she dozed off, a rare smile gracing her features, he found himself lying awake and staring at the ceiling for most of the night.

It had felt nice, sure, there were no complaints there... but when she gasped out that she loved him after, he found himself repeating the words back hollowly. It only took what was supposed to be the most intimate experience of his life for him to see that he didn’t love her anymore, if he even had to begin with. 

She may have loved him at one time but not as the person he was now, he realized. No matter how much he tried to show her that he wasn’t the same Zuko from their childhood she wanted him so desperately to be.

The next morning she’d tried to be affectionate and lift his spirits in her own way, but he’d just closed himself off from that point onwards. Then to add insult to injury, he dumped her soon after through a letter when he left the Fire Nation to help train the Avatar and became its number one traitor. 

His track record was so terrible both romantically and personally it was a miracle anyone still liked him at this point. 

~*~*~

Zuko didn't mention any of that to Katara, though. Instead, he just looked back up at the night sky full of stars.

“After I returned home, I realized I wasn’t the person I used to be anymore, and she was still the same,” he said softly. “Any time I tried to talk with her about everything I’d gone through, all of the people I’d met and how the world outside was so negatively affected by the Fire Nation’s campaign, she just brushed me off or shut me down completely. It was like she tried to pretend that the last several years hadn’t happened.”

He paused.

"She did that a lot actually. Whenever I tried to open up about anything, she'd shut it down instantly."

Katara frowned at this but didn't comment.

“I told her about all of the humiliating things I went through when I was a poor and even after I became a tea server in the lower ring of Ba Sing Se. She still thought it would be fun to order the servants around just to see them scrambling to meet her demands. She just couldn’t see things from a different point of view. When I decided to defect, I knew she wouldn’t understand, so I broke up with her in a letter.”

“I know, I know,” he said, holding up a hand in response to Katara’s indignation at the thought of being dumped that way. “If I could go back and redo that part, I would. But I had to sneak out and make a quick exit, so I didn’t really have a choice.”

Katara considered this for a few minutes. 

"You know..." she began softly before shaking her head. "No, never mind."

He turned his head in the sand to look at her.

"What? We're friends. You can tell me anything."

She bit her lip.

"This is going to sound harsh," she said, "but why would you want to be with someone who can't do the bare minimum to make you happy? I'm not saying she had to be your therapist, but at the very least Mai could have actually listened to you when you tried to open up."

He opened his mouth to speak, but she continued.

"I'm also not saying she has to change her personality either, but I think _you_ need someone you can open up around without being afraid of rejection every time. It... it doesn't sound like you two were compatible at all, if I'm being completely honest."

She paused, and her next words were gentler.

"Look, I don't know her as well as you do, Zuko. But when you care about someone, you don't shut them down every time they try to talk. Life is hard enough as it is without being with someone who makes you feel like less than you deserve. I mean, we're not even in a relationship and it sounds like you've opened up to me tonight more than you were ever able to during those months you were with her."

Something seemed to click in his mind, and his eyes widened. 

"I guess you're right," he conceded after several minutes. "I don't exactly have the best experience when it comes to happy, healthy relationships in my family... except for my mom and my uncle."

She reached out and gave his hand a gentle squeeze of reassurance before letting go, and they looked up at the stars dancing in the sky in silence. There was still something she was curious about, though, and she might have had an ulterior motive for what she said next.

“So,” she asked as he turned his head to look at her. “If you could somehow get back together with Mai, would you?”

He looked back up at the stars for a while.

Katara had given him a lot to think about, including a few uncomfortable truths he'd been trying to avoid. In a matter of minutes, she'd seen right through him better than Mai ever had.

At last, he spoke.

“No… not unless she’d made the effort to move forward,” he said. “Before I left I felt like she was holding me back, and I was regressing to the person I used to be. I’m not that guy anymore.”

“That makes sense,” she agreed softly.

He looked back sideways at her.

“What about you and Jet? If you could somehow have a second chance with him, would you?”

She shook her head slightly.

“No, for me it’s something similar. When he died - when I saw him last, he seemed like he’d changed and he even helped us look for Appa,” she said, returning his gaze sadly. “But I think ultimately he wouldn’t have been able to move past his prejudice against the Fire Nation.”

She remembered something just then.

“Didn’t you find Appa under Lake Laogai and set him loose?” she asked, and he nodded.

“Truth be told, I originally wanted to hold him hostage to trap you guys so I could take Aang back to the Fire Nation,” he admitted, embarrassed. “But luckily my uncle found out and talked sense into me.”

He decided to skip the next part, where he’d literally fallen sick for days afterwards from finally doing the right thing.

“How did you manage to sneak in and find him, anyways?” she asked.

He suddenly grinned.

“That’s another thing the play got wrong - I was actually the Blue Spirit who rescued Aang from Zhao," he bragged. "You’d be surprised how easily I can sneak into places without using firebending. I'm actually really stealthy when I choose to be.”

 _Interesting_ , she thought. A firebender disguising himself in blue... not unlike how she'd disguised herself in red as the Painted Lady. There was something symbolic about that, but she decided to pursue that trail of thought some other time.

“Well, that explains how you managed to sneak into the Spirit Oasis at the North Pole,” she agreed. “By the way, what was that thing you said when you knocked me out and took Aang hostage?”

He grimaced slightly.

“Yeah, sorry about that, again. I think it was something about how I rose with the sun and you with the moon.”

She shrugged her shoulders in the sand.

“I don’t know, that was actually kind of poetic,” she said. “I was on the verge of unconsciousness so I couldn’t remember it exactly. It almost sounds like a pickup line.”

His cheeks flushed, and she decided to tease him a bit more. Flustered Zuko was quickly becoming her favorite Zuko.

“Then there was that time you tied me to a tree and whispered in my ear from behind while waving my mother’s necklace around,” she added in a completely somber tone. “By the way, did you know that’s a betrothal necklace, and by draping it around my neck you were essentially proposing to me?”

His entire face had turned red now, and he sat up in bewilderment.

“Wait, really? Oh no, Katara no, I didn’t… not saying that you’re not great and all… I just–”

He was interrupted by her bursting into laughter and rolling side to side in the sand.

“You… you… you should have seen your face,” she wheezed as tears started trickling from the corners of her eyes.

He looked decidedly less amused. She was afraid for a second that he’d get up and storm off, but he just grabbed the bottle of whiskey and gulped more down, rolling his eyes.

“I should tie you to a tree again just for that,” he muttered, shoving the bottle back into the sand. “That wasn’t funny. Next you’re going to tell me that wasn’t even an engagement necklace.”

She finally settled down and sat up, poking his ribs once more.

“Oh, lighten up Zuko,” Katara giggled. “It was funny. For the record, yes, it is an actual betrothal necklace. It originally belonged to my grandmother when she lived in the Northern Water Tribe.”

He huffed but looked much less put out than before.

"I don't know if I ever apologized, but I'm sorry for grabbing her arm and scaring her back when we first met," he said quietly after a minute.

She smiled at him.

"Thank you. If we survive this and you get to see her again, she'd appreciate hearing that, too."

He nodded.

“So how did she end up all the way down in the South?” he asked, intrigued.

Katara told him the story of how her grandmother had rebelled against the Northern Water Tribe’s outdated and rigid tradition forbidding female waterbenders from being anything more than healers.

He seemed impressed when she explained how she’d challenged those rules herself when she faced off against the man who could have been her grandfather in another lifetime.

“So the South doesn’t do the whole betrothal necklace thing?” he asked when she’d finished. “I’m just trying to wrap my head around how you didn’t know its significance before then.”

She shook her head.

“Not exactly,” she explained. “The North has arranged marriages, which are signified by the suitor carving a necklace for his intended bride. In the South, women are free to marry whomever they choose. The men also give the women something to signify their engagement, like a family blanket or pelt or some sort of trinket. I still think the men could carve necklaces if they wanted to, but we didn't have many resources like that in the South. When my dad proposed to my mom, he just used the necklace given to Gran Gran. In hindsight I always thought it was a family heirloom.”

He mused this over and decided to ask yet another question that was entirely too personal. Besides, it never hurt to have a random bit of information, right? Right.

“So – not that I’m ever going to propose to you, just so we’re clear – but do you ever think about stuff like that? If you’d want a betrothal necklace whenever some guy proposes to you?”

Where was he even going with this?

“You know your social skills are just hopeless, right?” she asked, feeling a slight blush on her cheeks.

He saw her expression and once again held his hands up.

“I like being direct. Awkward turtleduck, remember?” he said. “I shouldn’t say anything but I wanted to get your perspective. You’ve got to keep what I’m about to say just between us, okay?”

She nodded, intrigued.

“I think your brother might propose to Suki at some point – " he started before her face broke out into a wide grin and she shrieked.

Oh for Agni’s sake. Without thinking, he clapped his hand over her mouth.


	3. Chapter 3

“Sh!" he hissed. "Do you want to wake everyone else up and explain to them why you’re out here screaming?”

She just giggled and removed his hand.

“One, I’ll just tell them I saw a huge bug or something, and my fierce, strong firebending friend was here to scare it off,” she said.

Technically she could handle even giant bugs by herself, but something inside her wanted to see him blush again - hence the roundabout compliment. 

She could always say he was making her scream in an entirely different way but resisted the urge to say so.

_Too much, Katara. Where did that even come from?_

“Two, what did you think was going to happen when you told me something like that? Did Sokka say anything to you specifically?”

He shook his head and realized she was still holding his hand from when she’d removed it. She noticed it as well and let go.

“Not specifically… just a feeling. That’s why I said to keep quiet about it either way,” he explained.

“Ohh…” she said, musing it over. “Well, I can see why you’d think that. They're both head over heels for each other, and I think she’d be a great addition to our family. I know Dad thinks highly of her too. So I’d be the first in line to help plan their wedding if he proposed.”

“That’s why I was asking about the betrothal necklaces,” Zuko said. “I was wondering if Sokka would actually try to carve one for her.”

He was also morbidly curious to see how well (or how terrible) it would turn out, considering his friend’s lack of artistic ability, but he chose not to say so.

Katara shrugged.

“Probably not, unless he was marrying a girl from the Northern Water Tribe. I don’t know what Kyoshi Island’s traditions are in that regard, but I guess Sokka would figure out something special to give her.”

He couldn’t help himself. 

”Let’s just hope it’s not a drawing,” he quipped. “Otherwise she’d turn him down.”

Katara opened her mouth to defend her brother but found herself cracking up along with Zuko.

He could be so hopelessly awkward at times, but then he could make her laugh out of nowhere. This new Zuko was just full of surprises, she thought. 

“You’re terrible,” she giggled, and he shrugged.

“So I’ve been told,” he said.

She leaned over and found herself resting her hand on his shoulder.

“I meant in a good way,” she said softly, noting the way his eyes widened slightly when she touched him.

She gave his shoulder a light squeeze and withdrew her hand. 

“Luckily for my brother, I think Suki loves him enough she’d say yes regardless,” Katara said, and her heart started to beat just a bit faster. 

She gestured to the pendant hanging from her neck. Once they'd gotten back from the play, she'd immediately put it back on. 

“Going back to your earlier question, I guess I’d like some sort of gift when I get engaged,” she added. “But probably not another necklace, since I'd still want to wear my mother's. Anyways I don’t see myself getting married any time soon, so it’s a moot point.”

“I see,” he said, nodding. “Well, whenever you do end up engaged, I’ll help Sokka scare the guy straight first so he knows not to break your heart.”

She looked thoroughly unimpressed.

“You realize I can take care of myself, right?”

"Unless it's a huge bug, apparently," he retorted.

She rolled her eyes.

“But anyways, let’s say the guy you end up with is some powerful bender or something," he continued. "Look, Sokka’s my friend and I think highly of him and his skills as a warrior, but if your waterbender fiancé comes after him with a tidal wave there’s not a lot he can do. That’s why I’ll be his backup.”

Her eyebrows raised slightly.

"What makes you so sure I'll marry a powerful bender?" she asked, recalling a fortune told to a young girl hopeful for the future.

He waved his hand absentmindedly.

'I don't know, I guess it doesn't matter if your husband can bend or not," he conceded. "For some reason though, I see you with someone you can go toe-to-toe against."

She nodded her head.

"For what it's worth, I feel like that's my destiny someday, too," she said quietly.

He glanced at her, intrigued.

"You know, my uncle used to talk to me all the time about destiny and how you can always reshape it like the clouds themselves. He was mainly trying to talk me out of hunting you guys down, in hindsight, but there was something he told me one time that I still think about."

He tried to do his best impression of Iroh, but he had a feeling he wasn't quite doing him justice. At least she seemed amused.

"Destiny is a funny thing, you never know how things are going to work out," he said, emulating his uncle's voice as best he could. "But if you keep an open mind and an open heart, you'll find your own destiny someday."

He looked over at her sheepishly and rubbed the back of his neck.

"Yeah, I've never been that good at impersonations. You should hear me try to do Azula."

She giggled and leaned against his shoulder again. This time, there was less hesitation as his arm draped around her once more.

“So, why do you think I’ll marry a waterbender?” she asked, and he looked down at her in mild surprise.

“Really?” he said. “Well, I just always assumed…”

She shrugged.

“When we visited the Northern Water Tribe I was Master Pakku’s top pupil. None of his other students, at least the ones around my age, were anywhere near my level, and I'm the only one left from the South. Like you said, I want someone who can keep up with me. I want to end up with someone strong.”

He considered this for a moment.

“I guess I could see you marrying an earthbender like Haru. He's pretty tough and would treat you well. Plus, he's already a decent guy, so we wouldn't have to scare him beforehand.”

She shook her head.

“No, Haru is a dear friend and all, but I’ve never felt anything like that for him,” she said. “He’s going to make someone happy one day, but there just aren't any sparks there."

He grinned down at her.

"Sparks, huh?" he asked. "So no boring marriage of convenience for you then."

Katara shook her head.

"I think I also need someone who challenges me in a good way,” she admitted.

She looked up at Zuko and smirked. It had become a wicked game for her, seeing how much she could fluster him. She knew she should probably stop but she couldn’t help herself. 

“Who knows? I might even end up with a guy from the opposite element," she joked. "Know any single firebenders you could set me up with?”

 _She's on a roll tonight_ , he thought. He’d been a good sport so far as she teased him but decided it was high time to retaliate. There was also something he wanted to try out, just to see if it led anywhere.

He suddenly pulled her closer to his side and brushed a strand of hair away from her face.

“I can think of one,” he said huskily as possible, inwardly triumphing at the sudden look of astonishment in her eyes and the blush spreading across her face.

She started to squeak out a response, but after a beat he cracked up laughing and released her, falling back in the sand.

Katara huffed and swatted at him again.

“That wasn’t funny!” she hissed.

“I beg to disagree,” he said once he stopped laughing. “What was it you said earlier? Something about the look on my face?”

”Fine, you called my bluff,” she said, her cheeks hot.

She’d been just a bit disappointed it had all been an act. Leave it to Zuko to finally be smooth instead of awkward, when it didn’t actually mean anything.

”Okay then, what about you?” she asked once he’d quieted down. “What kind of woman entices the Fire Prince?”

He thought it was fairly obvious that he had been flirting with her just now - after all, he'd finally managed to be cool for once. The only reason he'd pulled back and tried to play it off as a joke was because he lost his nerve.

Zuko was just a bit surprised by it himself. Where did that even come from? Sure, she was attractive, but she was also his good friend.

But maybe this could lead to something more? Then again, she was so guarded at times that he opted to answer carefully. 

“I guess someone who’s kind, smart, and strong," he offered. "Someone who gets me but who's also not afraid to put me in my place when I need it."

She nodded along.

“And definitely someone who can handle a drink of whiskey like a grownup,” he added with a mischievous look in his eyes.

She huffed again and turned away from him.

“If you’re not going to be nice then I’m going to bed,” she threatened, crossing her arms.

He rolled his eyes even though she couldn’t see.

“I was being nice, Katara. You started it and I just finished it. You’ve been teasing me all night long and I finally decided to give you a taste of your own medicine.”

She looked back at him and quirked an eyebrow.

“You do realize there’s an entire ocean right there, so I could really give you a taste and punish you if you don’t behave,” she said with a gleam in her eyes.

Zuko didn’t know why that challenge or the look in her eyes suddenly turned him on like it did. He sat up quickly and made sure the front of his tunic hid any potential evidence.

In spite of his better judgment, he found himself leaning towards her until their faces were inches apart.

“Is that so?” he rasped, sounding once more like the prince who’d tied her to a tree and tried to tempt her with a necklace. “Because I can take you right here, right now.”

Her eyes glowed in the firelight.

“I’d love to see you try, Zuko. I’d have you begging for mercy in a heartbeat.”

Oh, he was in a _completely_ different type of danger now. He just smirked and moved his face even closer to hers.

“Then do it, “ he said in a low, guttural voice she'd never heard him use before. “I want to see you make me beg.”

She smirked back at him for a minute and even moved a bit closer herself. He was about to lean in all the way when something clicked in her mind and she suddenly pulled back.

Zuko closed his eyes to hide his disappointment, although two small wisps of smoke escaped from his nose. When he opened his eyes again, he made sure his face was a mask of cool indifference.

“What, having second thoughts about taking me on?” he teased lightly.

She shook her head and stood up, stepping away to dust the sand off her clothes.

“You wish,” she smirked back down at him. “I just realized how late it is, and we both need to go to bed soon. I’ll have to take you on some other time.”

She held her hand out to him to help him up, and he stood, snuffing out the campfire. 

“Good,” he said, smiling down at her in the dim light. “I’ll hold you to that.”

“You better,” she teased, then started to walk back up to the beach house.

He took advantage of the darkness and her turned back to quickly adjust himself before grabbing the halfway empty whiskey bottle and falling in line beside her. Zuko was tempted to reach out and take her hand, but he stopped himself.

 _Better play it safe_ , he supposed, clenching his fist and releasing it.

~*~*~

Before they went inside, however, she stopped him.

"Can I see that?" she asked, gesturing to the bottle.

Curious, he handed it over.

Katara uncorked it and took a large swallow. She grimaced, but unlike before she kept it down this time.

"See?" she proclaimed even though her face contorted. "I can handle alcohol like a grownup."

Zuko realized what she was implying and moved closer to her, hardly daring to breathe.

"Apparently so," he said softly. "You didn't have to do that for my sake, though."

She shook her head.

"No, that was for mine, actually."

Katara finally regained her composure and looked up at Zuko to find him watching her with an almost tender look in his eyes.

They stood there for some minutes, neither moving or looking away from each other.

Finally, he swallowed and ducked his head.

"I guess we should go inside," he said regretfully, hating himself for backing out at the last moment.

He never ran away from a fight, and yet here he was, being a coward again when a pretty girl showed interest. What was _wrong_ with him?

She nodded and looked just a bit disappointed as well.


	4. Chapter 4

The house was completely silent as they crept back inside. When they reached the point where they’d have to split off to go to their separate rooms, they paused.

He was half tempted to ask her if she wanted to sleep in his bedroom that night but knew that was probably pushing things too far.

She pulled him in for a quick hug.

“Goodnight, Zuko,” Katara whispered near his ear, and then she was gone.

He found himself staring down the dark hallway she’d disappeared into and reached up to touch his face. He could have sworn he felt her soft lips brush against his cheek for just a moment.

What was he _doing_? He was an _idiot_.

Zuko quietly set the bottle down by his door and silently followed after her.

Her door was already closed when he got there, and as he reached for the handle, he heard it lock.

He stood frozen for a few seconds debating whether or not he should knock.

She had practically given him the go-ahead twice now, and he'd panicked instead. He finally turned and walked back to his room, defeated.

 _Stupid, stupid, stupid_.

He sprawled out on his bed but didn’t lock his door, just in case she decided to come back.

Some time later he realized it was futile. He sighed and decided to finish off the rest of the whiskey.

~*~*~

Katara leaned against her door after she locked it, wondering if she'd completely misunderstood everything about that night. 

Then she perked up when she thought she heard the faintest creak of a floorboard outside a few minutes later and remembered what Zuko said about being stealthy.

She silently unlocked the door and peeked out, half hoping and half terrified he'd be on the other side, but the hallway was empty.

Disappointing, but not unexpected.

She just hoped she hadn't made a complete fool of herself earlier with the whiskey. Remembering how she'd swallowed the disgusting stuff for liquid courage, as well as an attempt to impress him, now made her cringe.

Sighing, she crawled into bed and tried to sleep.

~*~*~

The next morning, both of them managed to act normal enough around each other. After all, nothing had actually happened the night before.

They were just two good friends who'd stayed up late, sharing stories, giving advice, and laughing around a campfire on the beach.

But Katara couldn't stop the pounding of her heart whenever he looked at her, even if it was just for a second. She wondered if he too was feeling nervous, but his exterior remained calm and cool.

The only person who could have told her if his heart was racing too didn't even act like she noticed anything was off.

Good. All she needed was for Toph to call her out on her little crush on the Fire Prince, especially after that awkward scene from the play.

She thought she caught that same tender look from last night in his eyes once or twice during breakfast, but whenever he realized she was looking at him, it quickly vanished to impassiveness.

~*~*~

Even though she had other responsibilities that morning, she found herself wandering outside to watch their firebending training. At least the others were out there too, so it wasn't obvious that she was secretly checking him out.

Zuko was pleasantly surprised when he saw her sit down on the steps to watch him practice. Maybe there was hope and he might redeem himself after all.

He and Aang trained for a few hours before Katara felt mild goosebumps prick her skin.

"I think it's about to rain," she announced with a slight thrill in her voice.

Sokka scoffed and shook his head. 

"Nice try, but it's still mostly sunny right above us, sis. The clouds overhead aren't even dark enough, and the ones that are won't be here for another several minutes."

Almost as if on cue, rain fell from the sky as the sun shone above, illuminating the droplets like gemstones. The six friends looked upwards in surprise.

Aang rushed off the courtyard, but Zuko remained rooted to the spot, closing his eyes and enjoying the sensation of the cool water trickling down his skin.

He heard light footsteps amidst the pattering of the rain. He opened his eyes and looked down to see Katara had walked out from under the covered walkway to stand beside him.

"What's happening?" she asked, looking around in amazement, holding out her palm to catch raindrops. "How can there be rain when the sun's still out?"

She was getting as soaked as he was, absorbing her element as it poured from the heavens, but she didn't seem to notice. He knew the others were standing nearby, able to see and hear everything.

Suddenly, he didn't care. Zuko smiled at her, and to his relief, Katara smiled back. 

"It's called a sun shower," he explained quietly. "You've never seen one before?"

She shook her head, watching in astonishment at the way the water sparkled in the sunlight around them. He continued.

"It's when the wind blows rain from a storm into a sunny place nearby, or when rain passes overhead and the sun is at the right angle to shine through the clouds."

Katara looked back at him and moved a bit closer.

"So, two elements that don't normally interact," she mused. "But combined, they’re breathtaking."

He found himself agreeing, suddenly aware of his heart pounding against his ribs.

_You just need a single spark to light the fuse..._

She gently waved her arms outward and stopped the rainfall in the courtyard, similar to how she'd done when they faced down Yon Rha. This time, though, she was smiling and giggling as the water pooled overhead and flowed down the sides of the pocket she'd created just for her and Zuko.

Glittery beads of rain hung in midair catching the sun's golden rays, illuminating them both with thousands of small sparkling droplets of light.

He looked up in amazement as sunlight pierced through and refracted on the water above, casting shimmering lights and a small rainbows around them as well.

"They don't happen very often," he found himself saying, his voice suddenly hoarse as he looked back down at her. "But when they do, it's like the sun and the rain fuse together perfectly to create something truly beautiful."

Her blue eyes sparkled amidst light and water as they met his, and he knew he was past the point of being in danger now. If the others weren't standing right there in full view, he would have taken her in his arms and kissed her.

She started to say something, but she was cut off by her brother calling to them from under the covered walkway.

"Hey you two! Stop playing in the rain and come dry off. It's lunchtime!"

She nodded absentmindedly in his direction.

"We're coming!" she chirped.

~*~*~

Her brother and Suki had watched their interaction from under the covered walkway. They exchanged knowing glances at each other, and after a moment, Sokka shrugged and draped his arm over Suki's shoulders. He turned his head back, calling out to get their attention as they walked away towards the kitchen. 

Aang made a beeline for cover once it started pouring and quickly bended the rainwater away from himself. When he realized Zuko hadn't followed he turned to see his firebending teacher standing out in the rain. He was smiling and talking with Katara, who shared his grin as she bended the water overhead.

He felt something sink in his stomach as everything clicked into place - the crystal catacombs scene from the play, the way Zuko slid into the spot next to Katara, the way she'd rebuffed him last night and said she was confused...

Aang was about to walk back out and interrupt them, but Toph grabbed his shoulder and guided him to the kitchen instead.

"Come on Twinkletoes, let's get some grub. They'll catch up."

~*~*~

Katara used one hand to continue holding the pocket of water overhead and extended her other out to Zuko.

"Let's go," she whispered, nodding her head towards the house and beaming up at him.

He smiled down at her and took her hand in his as they walked, and once again he didn't care if the others saw.

~*~*~

All morning long Toph had noticed the way both Zuko and Katara's heartbeats pounded like crazy. She had her suspicions but hadn't mentioned it, choosing to wait it out instead.

When the rain started falling and she sensed Katara walking out in it to join Zuko, she knew her instincts had been correct.

She'd almost laughed out loud but stopped herself just in time. Who'd have thought? Sugar Queen and Sifu Hotman liked each other.

It was almost as surprising as sunshine in a storm.


End file.
